Does religion produce unique sensations?

[Dystopia]

Often I hear the conversation between religious apologists and secularists/atheists and one of the arguments used is that we can achieve anything religion does without it trough secular means - So if we can just dump religion and still do the good things  (like having a sense of community and a common "spiritual goal") we would be better as a society.

I fundamentally agree that the reason religion appeals to many people is because of the social advantages, the sense of community and "teamwork", the fact you can meet new people and even get married in a sacred wedding, believing in a higher cause - Many of these things can be achieved trough other means, so we don't need religion. But... I think there's something else. There's something almost "magical" about the brain of a devout religionist - They feel entitled to moral superiority, they truly believe to be right most, if not all the time, they think only them know the absolute truth and they believe they'll go to heaven after dying - There's a tremendous dissonance here, religionists think they are right, and sometimes it seems to me that even if they try they can't stop believing.

There's a certain effect religion has on people that I don't think other means achieve. I can't really say what it is, but what other institution leads people to feel so entitled, to kill, insult and hate others? What other institution in society makes people so committed that they will gladly sacrifice many of life's pleasures and activities just to hypothetically go to heaven? Why are people so blindfolded towards the lack of evidence and seem to be convinced they are right? I'm not a religionist, but I'm fascinated by why people believe. It seems to me there must be something unique that makes religion attractive, I don't know what it is though.

Politics and culture can lead people to a sense of entitlement and commitment as well, but the level of work people put into it is not comparable. No one in a democratic society will tell you that you're going to hell if you decide to stop being a liberal, or a conservative, or a communist. No one will tell you to blindly believe in a political ideology - You're supposed to buy books, listen to politicians and decide which is more right or less right, but hardly anyone threatens you or kills you for leaving - At the most, you may disappoint a few folks and obviously be criticized by opposite ideologies on the political spectrum.

Culture is a part of human societies, but most people just follow the most well known and accepted cultural norms, like not working on sundays and celebrating certain holidays, speaking a certain language, going to specific places and dressing in a specific way.

In the mind of a religionist, anyone who doesn't believe is going to hell - And the religionist genuinely wants to save people, he/she feels sorry for us, they think we are lost souls, they deliver us speeches and try to convert us with the best of intentions, and they think whatever goes against their belief is a sign of moral decay and Satan doing his work - In fact, even something as important as science can be attributed to Satan as a way to dismiss god's work.

So what do you think? Is there an unique feeling or variable in religion that makes it attractive? Why or why not?

[Spooky]

Religion is just an interesting mix of Sociology, Psychology, and Groupthink.  The serotonin produced by being a part of such groups is not unique, and can readily be experienced elsewhere. (I voted no)

[rado84]

The only thing that religion produces in large quantities is murderers.

[Spooky]

The only thing that religion produces in large quantities is murderers.

That too 

[Regina]

[Longhorn]

Nothing that can't be repeated with a healthy amount of drugs

[Metis]

I voted other. There are ways to reproduce the certainty and elated feeling many true believers experience, but no other institution but devotion to a deity can bring it out and nurture it so effectively.

There are examples of Quasi-Religious Movements (I say Quasi because they of course never professed to be religions but they retain many similar features like core beliefs, goal, strongly hierarchical leadership and absolute certainty only they have the right way/truth) like the Nazi's or early twentieth century Communism that have managed to produce emotional experiences like religious activities; attendees at Hitler's speeches often remarked how even though they strongly disagreed with what he said he had a gift to send crowds into a frenzy similar to what we see today at Pentecostal Faith Healing conventions.

There is only one thing I have seen faith in a deity able to produce that I have not encountered a secular institution capable of doing, and that is ecstasy. I'm not talking about Hitler making people go wild flailing at his rally, I mean genuine absolute conviction, contentment and occasionally even non-stop orgasmic bliss such as the experience several mystics like Teresa of Avila experienced.

I suspect this is because no secular institution has ever made as grandiose a claim as Christianity, so there is a far less tempting reward on offer for most Communists to devout themselves so fully. Even still the works and speeches of the likes of Julian of Norwich, John of the Cross and the two Fatima seers who died as kids are of something I have never seen elsewhere. Could be just hot-house environments leading to their productions, I have noted mystics do not appear outside of convents, monasteries or ultra devout locales but I've never seen a school or a philosophical academy produce something like that.

[vorlon13]

During the service for Clementa Pinckney when President Obama led the crowd in singing Amazing Grace, I choked up.

[ignoramus]

I instinctlively voted yes.
There's something about woo which brings the majestic emotions to the surface.
Completely unfounded and misguided but true nonetheless.

I let myself soak in the bullshit at funerals usually.

[bennyboy]

I've experienced things that I would not have experienced if I had not been engaged in religious activities at the time. I won't make assertions about the value of those experiences, or the underlying reality of their content, but certainly, they seem to me unique to religious pursuits. In fact, I think if anyone naturally had those experiences, he'd be very inclined to gravitate toward religious ideas.